#21: Being Robbed While on a Bicycle

Well, China just gave me a roundhouse kick to the neck. Actually, it was more like a getting robbed while getting out of the shower. I was mugged while riding a bike.

China’s been a rough time for Jasper and I. His meetings are growing more frustrating and I’m growing bored. The first three days I was in and out of meetings make the days short and productive. I have met with distribution firms, lawyers, software developers, more lawyers, bank reps, and did I mention lawyers. The days were a whirlwind. The days were productive. The days were fun. The nights were tiresome.

Our contacts and new friends wanted to party. Jasper is not a partier and I’m trying to slow down on the club front. Two days ago the meetings finished, but Jasper was not. So I started exploring the city with a rented bike. I would bike everywhere. I would find a tea shop and work. I would stay out of the way. In the end I wasn’t able to stay in one piece.

I was biking to the tea shop with the quickest wifi when some guy came up next to me in a scooter and started yelling at me in Mandarin. I have be China for a week and picked up a couple words but I didn’t know what the fuck this guy wanted. He had a huge grin on his face like he was new best friend. That was when he pulled out a small knife and motioned towards my backpack. I’m not fighter, but a deep part of me said I should stop and beat the shit out of this guy.

He stabbed at my right hand cutting the top of it lightly and proceeded to yell at me again while pointing at my bag. I slammed on the brakes and swung my bike around trying to escape, but little did I know Knife-guy had a friend on another scooter. This little guy had a gun. Fucker.

I slowly took my backpack off and handed it to him. I complied hoping they wouldn’t, you know, kill me. They took my bag. My laptop and notes were in there. Luckily they didn’t get a hold of my Merge phone or my wallet. My passport is still safe in my hotel room and I’m only moderately incensed at what went down.

It’s better than being dead, but I can’t wait to get the fuck out of here. The only good thing that came out of it is the idea to equip each of our Merge devices with the ability to wipe everything on it remotely in case someone steals sensitive documents or materials along with the device. This means more infrastructure, a modification to the hardware, and possibly expanding our own servers. I’ve never seen Jasper and Alison so pissed off after I suggested we prioritize the new feature before the pre-sale launch.

They could have been more supportive given I almost died. Oh well. I’ll find a nice place to relax in the meantime. I picked up a new laptop and should be able to leave in a couple days. I can’t imagine I will be robbed again. Right?